She said it was "disheartening" there had been a focus on the fact her father is white and her mother is African-American.

"At the end of the day I am proud of who I am and where I come from... we've just focused on who we are as a couple."

The couple declined to reveal the name of the mutual female friend who introduced them in July 2016.

But Ms Markle said she "didn't know much" about Prince Harry before meeting him.

"The only thing I had asked her when she said she wanted to set us up, was 'was he nice?' If he wasn't kind, it didn't seem like it would make sense".

The prince said he had not been aware of Ms Markle before their first meeting in London as he had never watched her TV show.

'So very happy'

Earlier, the couple posed for photographs outside Kensington Palace in London, where they will live.

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Media captionPrince Harry and Meghan Markle posed for the cameras in the garden at Kensington Palace

Prince Harry said he was "thrilled", while Ms Markle said she was "so very happy".

Ms Markle, wearing a white belted coat, held Harry's hand as they appeared briefly for the press at the palace's Sunken Garden, and showed off her diamond engagement ring.

Asked by a reporter when he knew Suits star Ms Markle "was the one", Prince Harry said: "The very first time we met".

The announcement of their engagement was issued by Clarence House on Twitter, the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall's official residence, and said details about the wedding day would be unveiled "in due course".

Harry's thoughtfulness

Ms Markle's engagement ring was designed by Prince Harry and features two diamonds which belonged to his mother.

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The band is made from yellow gold and at the centre is a diamond from Botswana.

Ms Markle said it was a sign of "Harry's thoughtfulness".

She had obviously not been able to meet his mother, she said, but it was "so important to me... to know that she's a part of this with us".

Ms Markle said she had met the Queen a couple of times and described her as an "incredible woman".

The Queen's corgis are said to have taken to her "straight away".

Asked about having children, Prince Harry said: "One step at a time and hopefully we'll start a family in the near future."

Ms Markle grew up in Los Angeles and attended a private primary school before studying at a girls' Roman Catholic college. She graduated from Northwestern University School of Communication in Illinois, as her acting career was beginning.

The Archbishop of Canterbury said he was "absolutely delighted" at the engagement announcement and indicated the couple would have a church wedding.

She was previously married, but the Church of England agreed in 2002 that divorced people could be allowed to remarry in church.